Notes on the Casey / Santorum Debate

I taped "Meet the Press" and watched the Bob Casey / Rick Santorum debate this afternoon. A complete transcript is available here and video available here (via Howard at PhillyFuture), so I'll just mention the things that really struck me.

Most shocking statement: Santorum said of "Islamic fascists:" "They don't care about life like we do." Say WHAT!!??? Has anybody else out there seen "Hearts and Minds?" Remember the same statement being made about the Viet Cong? This little gem gets trotted out every now and then to dehumanize the enemy. I think the leaders of terrorist movements and cells value life very highly, especially their own. That's why they get other people to go out in public with explosives strapped to their bodies.

Cheapest shot: Santorum telling Casey, Jr. how upset Casey, Sr. would be if he heard Casey, Jr. was supporting the use of Plan B emergency contraception. Telling your political opponent his own father would be disappointed in his political stance is just low, completely unsupportable, the sign of someone lacking in values.

Best question: In discussing Plan B, Santorum was opposed to making it available over the counter. Casey was in favor. Russert asked Casey if he believed life begins at conception. Casey said yes but Plan B is contraception not abortion. Sorry, but you are either pregnant or you aren't and if you are Plan B is going to end the pregnancy. Santorum made the snotty comment mention above about Casey's father. Then Russert asked Santorum why he supported abortion exceptions in the case of rape or incest, wasn't that taking a life? Santorum said yes it was taking a life but he was working to find common ground. Sounds like he wants it both ways. [Update: my response to Casey's views are corrected, science-wise in the comments by someone whose knowledge in this area is far greater than mine.]

Oddest repeating theme: Santorum's insistence that Iran was at the heart of the Iraqi war and sectarian violence, causing most of the region's problems.

Vaguest answer: Casey on how to maintain the integrity of social security. It's a problem not a crisis and the solution is economic growth, repealing the tax cut for the wealthy and reinstating the estate tax.

Best argument: Santorum and Casey arguing with each other over minimum wage votes. During this exchange Santorum said that yes he had voted against the minimum wage 13 times but for it 10 times. You could get whiplash following that voting record.

Best "gotcha:" In the question on residency Santorum said he spent maybe a month a year in the house he owns in Pennsylvania. After Russert showed the ad Santorum's campaign aired when he ran against Doug Walgren, pointing out that Walgren didn't live in the district, Santorum said that was completely different. Walgren didn't own a house in the district and was only in the district 28 days a year. Well that's certainly different from being in the district for a month a year. Santorum also said he visited each county in the state once a year. In the years he has been in office if he has visited my county he hasn't advertised it before the fact or hasn't done so in a public venue that I could attend.

Best statistic: Russert pointing out that Sanoturm voted with Pres. Bush 95% of the time in 2005, 100% of the time in 2004, 99% of the time in 2003, and so on.

Wardrobe notes: Casey wore a navy suit and a light blue tie. Santorum wore a black suit and a red tie.

Overall impressions: Santorum came off as on message, strange as those messages were, and, on a personal level, mean. Casey came off as on message, even if the message was vague or dull. They both came off as consummate politicians, polished, programmed, passionless. Keeping in mind that I intend to vote for Casey, you would still probably have to pay me a lot of money to spend any significant amount of time in the company of either of them. But I wouldn't sit with my back to Santorum unless I were wearing kevlar.

Watching debates carefully enough to blog about them has increased my respect for political journalists who have to pay even closer attention. My hat is off to the press corps.